Women's
Conversation With: Jason Wu
A preview of Jason's first ad campaign.
For a young designer, Jason Wu‘s collections have been consistently strong. No wonder brands have lined up to collaborate with him. (At the moment NM has the Jason Wu For Melissa jelly flat. Look for his Nest Fragrances candle later this Spring.) Now he’s rolling out his first collection ad campaign, which will be plastered, poster-style, all over Manhattan.
NM: Tell us about this gorgeous imagery.
Jason: “The idea behind the shoot was all about silhouette, highlighting the Fifties couture-inspired shapes of my Spring 2012 collection. This is my first official campaign and I partnered with Willy Vanderperre, known for his immaculate style, to lense the images. Model Julia Frauche was the muse because she represented so much of what the brand is about—she is fragile and delicate looking, but strong at the same time. My show was also the first show she’d ever done in New York. She went on to have an amazing season in Milan and Paris). Joe McKenna styled Julia as a super modernized pin-up girl.
NM: What else inspired your Spring collection?
Jason: An element of Pop Art and couture shapes. I really wanted to mix these two opposing ideas, making them seem at home with each other. I did that through using bright colors and sports mesh, mixed with chiffon. I also used really techie nylon fabrics to create raincoats that flow like chiffon. I wanted this idea of tech and this idea of artificiality that went with something that is quite beautiful and grandiose. The color story consists of shocking pink, electric blue and pop yellow. I wanted the collection to seem as if we took a Richard Avedon photo, turned it upside down and splattered color all over it.
An haute couture-inspired Spring look.
NM: And the accessories?
Jason: I wanted these beautiful pop, bright colors in interesting textures—the pythons—and in interesting structured shapes. It’s about taking these stately looking bags that are very structured and ladylike and giving them these new attitudes.
NM: What made you want to work with KAWS for this collection?
Jason: I think he’s really, truly our generation’s Keith Haring. And being such a talented artist he actually was one of my original inspirations for this collection. I was able to meet him through a mutual friend, and we decided to collaborate with each other. He placed his signature hands motif on a beautiful floral print that I created. I loved the idea that it’s a playful commentary on how many hands go into the making of one garment. And also, the idea of putting two completely unrelated illustration styles together and having them seem completely seamless.
The print on this top is the KAWS collaboration.
- A closer look.
Shop Jason Wu at NeimanMarcus.com and select Neiman Marcus stores.
